What a great job you did today in class!! I love it when you voice opinions and ask questions. You're thinking, and it shows!!
I'm entering the two sections separately because of the number of issues to which you might want to respond. You're welcome to respond to questions from either section....it was just going to get REALLY long.
Here are some points for you to consider and blog on from today.
1) Let's talk about how to make students who don't want to learn and who may have bad lives at home, want to learn. Any ideas out there? We'll definitely cover this more when the 'motivation' group presents....but it never hurts to gather ideas.
2) I'm not sure what this question means ... so Erin, can you provide some input? How do exploratory help and hurt the socialization of middle school students? What role does money play in the availability and expansion of exploratory programs?
3) What are the most important component in your own teaching philosophy? I'm not going to specifically address this because we'll be dealing with it next week, and you need to go on blackboard and read the materials that are there for your perusal.
4) As long as you did the assignment, you will get your points. The topic itself was very broad and broad responses are totally acceptable on this assignment.
5) Why does the middles school age group have so many demands? Alex, could you clarify this for us a bit?
6) Which do you believe is more important to a middle childhood aged student? Curriculum, parental involvement, or interdisciplinary teaching? This is a great question....I'm anxious to hear what you all think. I'll wait until you respond before I do.
7) One article states that the classroom should be 25u% lecture and 75% hands-on-activity, meaning using computer technology (Did the article specify that? There are gazillions of hands on activities that are not necessarily computer based.) Do you think that 10 - 20 years down the road computer technology will take over the teaching profession? This one is worth stating your opinion.....it's been a question that's been asked for a LONG time.
8) Do students really learn through games on line or are they just messing around?
9) If you're not sure what I want in regard to assignments do one of two things. Ask me or look at the rubrics.
Thanks for reading....be sure to respond.
4 comments:
Hello!
In response to the question about computer technology, I don’t think computers will EVER take over the teaching profession. I am taking EDTL 302 right now and I am learning how to incorporate different technology, particularly computers, into the classroom. However, although technology can be useful and engaging in a classroom, students need teachers. Computers alone can never establish rapport with students, cater to a student’s individual needs, or hold a student’s attention for an entire school day. Computer technology will always be helpful, but NEVER a replacement.
Also, in response to the first question about how to make unmotivated students want to learn, I think the teacher can help a great deal. The teacher can find out what a child likes to do, such as play baseball, and incorporate that into the lesson. Perhaps the teacher could play “science baseball” for a review game or use baseball illustrations when covering distance or area in math class. Find out what motivates a child and use it to catch their attention and keep them engaged.
I am taking several education classes this semester, so it is fun seeing how they all tie together:)
-Kerry Flahie
Good insights, Kerry. I'm glad your classes are working together and not telling you different things. Thanks for sharing.
Diann
1. I think if you can make what you are teaching the kids relate to their lives, they'll understand it more (Domain A1). In the movie Freedom Writers, all of the students had a 5th or 6th grade reading level and the teacher knew that gangs were a big part of the students' lives. She found a 5th grade level book about gangs to get them interested and then segwayed that into the Holocaust because it was easy to relate gangs to the Nazis. It was also something that they had never heard of before.
2. Money plays a huge part in what the school can do. I went to Columbus Public and none of the schools really had a whole lot of money. We were able to learn what we needed to on a limited budget. We had more than other districts, but not much. Some of my friends went to the suburb schools not too far away and what they had accessible was amazing. The district probably had about as much money as mine, but they had fewer schools that they had to spread it among. Money makes a huge difference-- but it doesnt have to, if we are teaching the way we should be, the students shouldnt notice.
7. Computers would never be able to take over the teaching profession because computers would never be able to relate to a child. Humans crave contact with other humans. A computer could never replace a good teacher.
8. Students can learn online if what they are doing is engaging enough. Students can also learn from a computer game without their realizing that's what they're doing. There's a really cute commercial with a little blond boy who's "just playing" with a game you hook up to your TV and the mom is going on about how he's practicing numbers, letters, computer skills, etc and I think that it's amazing. Sometimes, students can be messing around, but if you get something engaging enough, they can be learning at the same time.
--Jessica Kremer
I also responded to the 9:30 post. For question 6, I think its a combonation of all three. You need to teach the curriculum, how you do it however is up to you. You need parental involvement to help at home, and if there is none of that you need to make yourself avilable to the students to help when the parents cannot. and you need to team teach, with out it the classes fall apart. At Fassette the seventh grade teachers are trying new things to keep the school rules enforced, and every week they crack down on a certain set of rules. Last week they enforced, no gum chewing, and when the bell rings and announcements are on you sit and are quiet. My teacher said that with all the teachers doing the same rules, they have noticed improvement, and the students respond when all the teachers are consistant.
~Crystal Williams
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